In Honkai, But Integrated Strategies Activated

As per the title, my editor just spoke with me and decided that we'll be putting the novel up for sale this Friday.

Sigh. I just told everyone in the comments section yesterday that it would be on the 17th, and now it's changed.

The bad news is that the planned explosive update might be off the table.

The good news is that I have to write ten chapters before Friday.

I guess you could say the explosive update has just been moved up.

Okay, the word count is also enough, over 100. I'll save the rest for the author's note when it goes up for sale.

Chapter 7: Flame Willow's Weakness?

Before Huodou entered its second phase, Flame Willow was quite optimistic, even cracking jokes about Gojo Satoru.

However, once Huodou reached its second life, she immediately realized something was wrong.

The flames she'd activated with her own Honkai Energy had very little effect on Huodou. Of course, this was within their expectations. This wasn't a game, after all, and it was normal for a creature that fought with fire to have high fire resistance.

But what Flame Willow hadn't expected was that her activation had little effect on Huodou itself.

After they leisurely defeated Huodou's first phase, Flame Willow took advantage of Huodou's transformation into its second phase. She went right up to it, intending to tank the transformed fiery explosion and then take it down with a single activation.

As a result, the moment she injected her activated ability, Flame Willow realized something was off.

Didn't this Huodou just finish charging up after transforming? Why was it charging up again?

Then, she heard Xia Ling shouting from a distance.

"Quick, dodge! Why is this monster using its ultimate right after entering the burning state?"

Only then did Flame Willow snap back to reality and quickly retreat, but she was still blown away by the blast wave.

However, even more absurd things were yet to come.

"No way?" Xia Ling, who had hidden far away for fear of being caught in the aftershock, was completely bewildered. "Huodou just finished its nuclear explosion, why isn't it out of the burning state yet?"

Captains who have played the Elysian Realm should know that Huodou revives after its first phase, charges up a fiery explosion, and then enters a burning state.

After this state lasts for a period, if the ice accumulation bar isn't full, it will charge up again and unleash a multi-stage area-of-effect attack, commonly referred to as a nuclear explosion.

After the nuclear explosion, Huodou will exit the burning state, and then it's an excellent opportunity to deal damage.

Of course, not many people actually fight it to this point; they usually defeat it instantly.

"Did my activation just give it a buff?" Flame Willow, who was closer, felt her expression change. She quickly sensed it carefully and found that it was indeed the case.

For living beings, Flame Willow's activation relied on rapid metabolism to produce uncontrollable excess energy, leading to a loss of energy control, simultaneously causing burning and explosions.

But for Huodou, burning and explosions didn't cause much damage anyway. The excess energy produced, however, began to make it repeatedly enter the burning state.

In other words, the only semi-negative effect left was the rapid metabolism.

"Don't worry, I can feel it. Huodou's cellular activity is rapidly declining. Its potential is almost drained!"

Flame Willow dodged another claw attack from the sky. "If we can just hold on for a while longer, it'll exhaust itself!"

"How much longer is 'a while'!" Xia Ling shouted.

"One minute at most! I'm already pushing my ability to its limit. If I push it any further, I'm afraid it'll just explode!" Flame Willow's body blazed with fire, clearly using her ability at high load.

Finally, with a roar, Huodou's body collapsed on the ground.

"I've never found Huodou this difficult to fight."

Just barely defeating Huodou before the countdown ended, Flame Willow gasped for breath as it turned into light particles and disappeared, gritting her teeth.

"It's okay, at least the result is good." Xia Ling was also exhausted, slumping onto a piece of broken wall on the ground. "At least your weakness was exposed in the trial space, not in an actual battle outside. Otherwise, you would have suffered a major loss."

Before she could finish speaking, Xia Ling's body began to fade.

"Ah, my assist time is up." Xia Ling looked down at her increasingly transparent body and smiled. "I'm going back to enjoy Elysia's embrace. You can do it."

Flame Willow rolled her eyes. "Go on, go on. Remember to activate the Empathy."

After watching Xia Ling disappear as if returning to the Hall of Heroes, Flame Willow looked at the three portals slowly appearing before her.

This time, the portals were a bit strange: one red, one purple, and one blue. The red one, as usual, represented combat, the blue one was a safe corner, and the purple one...

"Data Turbulence?"

Back in the Elysian Realm's lounge, Xia Ling, who had just sat down next to Elysia, fell into a daze.

"I don't know what kind of node this is, but I'm guessing you modified it based on Thorn Path."

"Add one."

[Ah... that's right. You can think of it as a variant of Thorn Path.]

[However, there's one slight difference. After entering Data Turbulence, the next three nodes will be replaced by Turbulence nodes. You probably won't encounter combat in here, but you might encounter many unexpected scenarios.]

"Uh, unexpected? How unexpected?"

[Inspired by the Summer Event and the Golden Courtyard.]

"Okay, now I know just how unexpected it can be."

Xia Ling said with a look of deep sorrow in the channel to Flame Willow, "Hope you're okay."

"The smile in your voice is practically overflowing..." Flame Willow sighed helplessly, stepping into the portal. "Let me see what's going on?"

At the same time, Elysia and Xia Ling, their curiosity piqued, also looked at the screen.

[Data Turbulence]

[Amidst the turbulence, you are swept into an unknown land. Perhaps it originates from a Herrscher's fantasy or memory, or perhaps it's a parallel world observed by Su. In any case, this area is highly abnormal.]

[You explore forward until you arrive at a castle forged from ice. Beneath a throne made of solid ice, you see a cold, white-haired man sitting majestically upon it, looking down at you from above.]

[The man's imposing aura and the chill in the environment envelop you, causing you to shiver involuntarily. The man on the throne seems disinclined to speak. How do you plan to break the silence?]

[Ask the man what this place is (obtain Collectible - Roadmap)]

[Ask the man why he is sitting there (obtain a one-time Kevin support item)]

[Express your nervousness and fear to him (obtain a cold joke, with a chance to also get Kevin's Complete Collection of Cold Jokes)]

After reading the abstract node description, Elysia felt her lips twitch. The familiar scene reminded her of a movie she had once asked everyone to make together.

(Heh, Kevin, Kevin. I never expected that despite your outwardly cold demeanor, you'd secretly save such data. As expected, you're still the same old you. You've never changed.)

"Cool~" Xia Ling said halfway through, feeling the temperature in the lounge drop. "System, you really know how to entertain. I give you a thumbs-up."

"By the way, if I choose the last option, will I get Kevin's comfort?"

[That's right. And after Kevin comforts you, he'll be too embarrassed to admit he's just stuck to the ice. If you discover and help him proactively, you'll receive a Complete Collection of Cold Jokes.]

"You've made me want one."

(Yeah, yeah, Miss Fairy wants one too. Wuwuwu, why can't this body of mine speak freely?)

(But if the system has this data copied, Kevin must have it too, right? Hmph, I'll ask him with Feather Dust later, then.)

Chapter 8: I Can Be Cool Too~

Meanwhile, in the current node, Flame Willow was already conversing with Kevin.

"This... big brother? Why are you... sitting here?"

Even though she already knew the answer, Flame Willow still pretended to be serious as she asked Kevin.

As for the reason... fun fact: the system's trials can be recorded in full.

"..."

"Because I cannot leave this place."

Kevin sat on the ice throne, his voice as serious as ever.

"Could it be... you're sitting here to maintain some kind of strange seal? Like a monster that will devour the entire continent if released?"

Flame Willow leaned back tactically, putting on a surprised expression.

Kevin's lips twitched, and he said in a low voice:

"Stuck..."

"Huh?"

"My back, my elbows, and... in short, I'm stuck everywhere."

Indeed, Kevin and the ice throne were sealed together, as if they were one.

Seeing the girl's dumbfounded look, Kevin seemed a little embarrassed.

"Please..."

Under Flame Willow's careful control, a small flame melted the ice between Kevin and the ice throne. Fortunately, this time she didn't cook Kevin like during the Summer Event.

"Thank you..." When not telling cold jokes, Kevin was as taciturn as usual.

"You... why did you sit on it?" Flame Willow was utterly perplexed.

"Because it was there."

Kevin paused, then added, "Don't you think it's the perfect size for my body?"

"You guy, you're definitely the type who sees a guardrail and can't resist sticking your head through the gap, only to get stuck and unable to pull it back, right?" After a while, Flame Willow accurately quipped.

"Anyway, thank you. Take this as a token of my gratitude."

Seemingly defeated by Flame Willow's remark, Kevin was silent for a moment before pulling a blue crystal petal from his pocket.

"A friend gave this to me. It seems to have some use here."

He quickly stuffed the item, which represented Kevin's support, into Flame Willow's hand and then made a hasty retreat, as if he had been hit hard by her teasing.

(Oh my, Kevin is indeed a shy boy. And isn't this... the "key" I gave Kevin back then?)

(But this seems to be only a part of it. What did the screen just say? Kevin's support item? Does this thing have such a function?)

"I really wonder what the effect would be if I showed these recordings to the people in World Serpent."

Flame Willow watched Kevin's hurried departure, a hint of amusement in her eyes.

"Perhaps not." Xia Ling imitated Kevin's voice in the channel, with Elysia's tone: "I can be cool too~"

"Hahahaha, this pun of yours, I suggest it be included in Kevin's Complete Collection of Cold Jokes."

For a moment, the trial was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

As Kevin's figure completely disappeared, a new portal appeared in the node.

The nodes of data turbulence were relatively fixed, leaving no room for choice. After passing through each node, only one portal would appear.

Skillfully, she entered the portal, and this time the scene was in a city.

Flame Willow looked around and quickly found the event target in this node.

Or rather, the word "find" was almost redundant, because hearty and wild laughter had already reached her ears.

"Hahahaha, do you feel this scorching rage?"

"Burn to ashes in this intense grilling, disappear into nothingness!"

"Weep for your own weakness and foolishness, regret appearing and blocking my path!"

"Hahahaha—"

"Whoa, what's with the direct broadcast." Flame Willow almost lost her balance.

[Data Turbulence]

[Amidst the turbulence, you've been swept into an unknown land. This place might originate from a Herrscher's fantasy or memory, or perhaps from a parallel world observed by Su. In any case, this area is highly abnormal.]

[You've arrived in front of a seemingly bustling open-air barbecue stall. Although the owner appears wild and unapproachable, the crowded scene before the stall clearly indicates that the barbecue master's skills are enough to make people overlook his minor personality flaws. So, facing this barbecue stall, what do you plan to do?]

[Join the queue for some barbecue (obtain Master Chien's special barbecue, which can enhance your physical strength, but may have unknown consequences)]

[Set up your own stall and compete for customers with Master Chien]

[No thanks, I don't like barbecue]

"If I were better at barbecuing, I'd actually be tempted to try option two."